Assuming
by wanderingsmith
Summary: S/W - Sometimes being protective first... can lead to embarrassment... EG


Summary: S/W, Sometimes being protective first... can lead to embarrassment... (EG)

Rating: PG-13  
Disclaimer: I ain't got no money, and nobody'd be daft enough to pay me for this. As it is said so let it be thought; you make the toys, I play with them.

AN: _Just read **lonepyramid**'s encouraging drabble 'Wednesday morning' and had a flash of vision.. which then kept going on... :) muse peeked back in! yay! and thank you 'lone pyramid'!_

"John!"

About to knock on the door, John froze, eyes widening at the not-quite-shout from within the room. Quickly pulling his knife out of his boot, he made Atlantis open the door; not stopping to route the fear-adrenaline by his brain.

Eyes scanning the room for danger as he swung in, keeping his back to the wall next to the door, he froze again. This time in permanent shock. Standing there in an aborted attack posture as his delinquent brain finally got the upper hand and closed the door before pointing out his mistake to him.

Why would Elizabeth shout his name when she had no reason to think he would be anywhere near? She would have comm'ed him if he was needed, or shouted 'help'.

'Idiot.'

And now, thanks to the lack of door-slamming-on-wall from Atlantis' technology and Elizabeth's current... lack of attention... He was in her room. Without her having invited him. At a time when she would definitely never have invited him!

And he just knew that the second he so much as 'thought' of sneaking back out the door she would immediately open her eyes and see him.

'Shit.'

She sighed softly, relaxing. Her hand sliding back to the bed.

'Double shit.'

'Come on brain, gimme a plan. Any plan!' His eyes were fixed on her as he desperately tried to make himself be brilliant. Refusing to wonder what 'he whom he would not bring here' would do in this situation.

Just as her alarm beeped and she sighed again, he came up with one weak plan. He closed his eyes.

Elizabeth rolled to slap the alarm off, opening her eyes as she automatically started going over her schedule for the day. Her mouth dropped open in shock when she saw John standing, back to the wall, with his knife at the ready. "John??"

As he jerked at her shout, she noticed that his eyes were closed too. "Yeah, see, that's what I heard when I went to knock on your door. I swear! I thought you were under attack. I never thought you..."

Slowly sitting up, feeling nerveless from shock, she stared at him as he swallowed whatever he'd been about to say. Her skin goosebumped as she realized that even though his eyes were closed now...

Oh. My. God. How could she have forgotten what she'd been doing moments ago. She shivered again, this time feeling it right where her finger had been when he... Oh god. When he walked in on her. Masturbating. Saying his name. She groaned in embarrassment, covering her eyes with her hands. Allowing herself just one minute to be the frozen maiden.

"Elizabeth?"

Well that minute was up. Elizabeth straightened, pulling on every inch of self-confidence she possessed to brazen this out.

At least it was John. As much as he would tease her when they were alone... oh would he ever tease her. At least she didn't have to worry about this changing his professional attitude.

She looked at him, still standing immobile, and her roving eye betrayed her again. Well. She'd spend the day hot and bothered, but she had ammunition to keep him from teasing her.

"Yes, colonel?" She got up and walked to the bathroom as she spoke.

"Err, you... I..."

Elizabeth was grinning as she listened to him stutter. "I'm going to have a shower. You can tell me why you were at my door when I'm done. Which usually takes ten minutes, by the way... you look like you need a little privacy yourself..."

John groaned, banging his head back on the wall. He'd hoped she wouldn't notice, somehow.

When he heard the shower start, he half-opened one eye to see if it was really safe. Well, that had gone better than he'd expected, he thought as he put his knife back in its sheath. Elizabeth wasn't mad at him and he wasn't under arrest. She'd already taken back the teasing rights but she'd left him time to keep from further embarrassing himself.

Speaking of that, he stared at the... open... door to the bathroom with a faint smile as he undid his zipper. Whether she was inviting him to look or planning to spy herself... he stayed where he was.

His mind's eye was seeing her naked, flushed body arching on the bed. Replaying exactly how she'd said his name. Seeing her fingers moving quickly; right where he wanted to be...

His eyes closed as he finished, not registering the lack of shower noise at first. Not until he started to straighten, opening his eyes as he pulled a tissue from his pocket. And met affectionate eyes in the hazy bathroom mirror.

Elizabeth hadn't consciously planned to leave the door open. Or to look in the mirror; though looking away didn't occur to her either. But when his soft green eyes met hers, neither of them was denying the interest they had in each other. Denying that they would both be quite capable of 'accidentally' trying to catch each other in a private moment.

She was as familiar with his caring smile as with her own. Knew he would close his eyes to let her leave the bathroom with her dubious privacy intact even before he did it.

She stepped out, gathering her clothe as she spoke, "So why were you at my door, John?"

He grinned, "To wheedle you into going for breakfast with me."

She chuckled, "Well... I do have an appetite..." She laughed out loud at having managed to make him choke aloud. "I'm sorry, John. You really are too easy, you know."

John rolled his eyes behind his lids, "Oddly enough Elizabeth, you're the only person who would think that. Which I'd feel worse about if you weren't a master negotiator, leaving poor old me at a hell of a disadvantage."

She walked up to him on silent, socked feet, grinning at the disgruntled tone. "I'm decent. You can go clean up if you'd like." When he opened his eyes, and before she changed her mind, she raised herself on tiptoes, balancing on his shoulders to kiss his cheek quickly.

His arms coming around her waist kept her from immediately moving away; pulled her a great deal nearer than she usually let herself be. When he just held her silently, a light quirk to his lips, she let herself follow the implied... request or permission, she wasn't sure which. She relaxed and rested on him.

John held his breath as she settled on him, unhurriedly wrapping his arms around her and tucking his chin on her temple. Of all the twisted paths his life had taken, the one that had led them here was suddenly, completely, worth it. "How long do you think we can keep this up, Elizabeth?"

One of her hands stroked his chest, "As long as we want to continue caring for Atlantis. You know that, John."

He sighed, wishing he'd believed that this conversation would happen and had come up with some good arguments before now.

But he hadn't. He pulled her closer, settling for what he could have. Elizabeth in his life, a job he was good at and where he could help her, and the hope that one day he'd come up with the words to convince her that those things didn't have to keep them waking apart.

AN: _there are about 5 places I thought this would close off... but it just kept going and going, just like the bunny (eg). And many thanks to the friends who reminded me why I like to write. ;) you're the best, ladies_

_and thank you mierac for catching that very bad oopsy!!_


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